Yarn take-up

ABSTRACT

Yarn take-up for winding cheese-type packages in which a large diameter drive roll imparts rotation to one, two or more yarn packages mounted on bobbins spaced apart around the periphery of the drive roll. Yarn is conducted through a traverse guide and a small diameter roll serves as a print roll between the traverse guide and the surface of the drive roll. The print roll is driven by the drive roll and preferably the yarn passes from the print roll around the front side of the drive roll where it is wound on the respective bobbins.

United States Patent 1 1 Brooks YARN TAKE-UP [75] Inventor: KennethBrooks, Charlotte,N.C.

[73] Assignee: Cela'nese Corporation, New York,

22 Filed: 066.2,1970 21 Appl.No.:94,395

[52] US. Cl ..242/18 DD, 242/355 R [51] Int. Cl. ..B65h 54/42 [58] Fieldof Search ..242/l8 DD, 35.5 R

[56] 1 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,116,887 1/19 4 Rehm..242/1s DD 2,647,697 8/1953 Pollock, Jr. 2,919,865 1/1960 Doherty...242/35.s R

11 3,72%,769 1 51 Apr. 3, 1973 Primary Examiner-Stanley N. GilreathAttorney-Thomas J. Morgan, Stephen D. Murphy and Herbert M. Adrian, Jr.

[57] ABSTRACT Yarn take-up for winding cheese-type packages in which alarge diameter drive roll imparts rotation to one, two or more yarnpackages mounted on bobbins spaced apart around the periphery of thedrive roll. Yarn is conducted through a traverse guide and a smalldiameter roll serves as a print roll between the traverse guide and thesurface of the drive roll. The print roll is driven'by the drive rolland preferably the yarn passes from the print roll around the front sideof the drive roll where it is wound on the respective bobbins.

4 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures YARN TAKE-UP BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThis invention relates to yarn take-up methods and apparatus and, moreparticularly, to methods and apparatus for winding yarn in a traversepattern in yarn packages.

In producing synthetic yarns in accordance with conventional practice,the yarn passes through a reciprocating traverse guide. The yarn thenpasses onto the surface of a drive roll. A bobbin is mounted for.rotation about an axis parallel the drive roll axis, so that the yarnwound on the bobbin engages the surface of thedrive roll. As the driveroll rotates, it drives the bobbin, and the yarn on the surface of thedrive roll passes through the nip between the yarn package and the driveroll. As the yarn package builds, the surface speed remains constant andthe bobbin axis moves progressively away from the surface of the driveroll to accommodate the increase in diameter of the package. An exampleof apparatus for winding yarns in this manner is disclosed in US. Pat.No. 3,355,116, issued Nov. 28, 1967.

In order to increase the capacity of yarn take-up machines, whileconserving space, it has been customary to mount a pair of bobbins inposition for the yarn package on each bobbin to engage the surface of asingle drive roll. The drive roll imparts rotation to both bobbins andthe'yarn from the traverse guide is printed? on the surface of the driveroll to achieve a uniform traverse wound yarn package. The drive rollthus serves as a print roll.

In order to facilitate removal ,of the yarn package, typical yarntake-up machines of this type have the bobbin chucks mounted at thefront side of the drive roll, where they are readily accessible. Theyarn traverse guide is positioned adjacent the rear of the drive rolland the yarn is printed on the rear side of the drive roll and iscarried on the surface of the drive roll to the bobbins at the front.This arrangement effectively controls the yarn pattern in the yarn thatis wound in the package, but this arrangement makes it more difficult tolace the yarn.

Another problem encountered with attempting to wind two yarn packageswith a single drive roll is that the diameter of the drive roll must berelatively large to provide the necessary spacing between the packages.If the yarn traverse guide is positioned to allow lacing the yarn overthe top of the drive roll, the traverse guide cannot be positioned closeto the surface of the drive roll and, consequently, a long length oruncontrolled yarn extends between the guide and the drive roll. Such anarrangement leads to variations in the pattern of yarn that is wound inthe yarn packages.

' SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of thisinvention to provide an improved yarn take-up for simultaneously windinga pair of yarn packages with a single drive roll.

A further object of this invention is to provide a yarn take-up methodand apparatus in which the yarn can be laced conveniently over the frontof the drive roll.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a convenientlylocated take-up which is equipped with a large diameter bobbin driveroll which provides ample room for the winding and accommodating yampackages having large diameter for maximum weight.

Another object of this invention is to provide method and apparatus forwinding yarn on bobbins from a single drive roll in which the yarn iseffectively controlled between the traverse guide and the surface of thedrive roll.

A still further object of this invention is to provide means formaintaining proper yarn winding tension on yarn package while permittingthe yarn to have a different level of tension, preferably smaller,upstream of the winding operation.

A yet other object of this invention is to provide a configuration oftake-up equipment that is particularly suitable for the adaptation tofully automatic doffing operations.

These objects are accomplished in accordance with a preferred embodimentof the invention by a yarn takeup having a large diameter drive roll. Onthe frontside of the drive roll, upper and lower bobbin chucks aremounted for movement toward and away from the drive roll. The bobbinchucks support the bobbins in position to be driven by the drive roll. Ayarn traverse guide is positioned adjacent the rear side of the driveroll and a small diameter print roll is mounted for rotation on apivoted arm. The print roll extends parallel to the axis of the driveroll and is interposed between the traverse guide and the surface of thedrive roll. A drive ring on the drive roll imparts rotation to the printroll in a direction opposite to that of the drive roll. The yarn passesthrough the traverse guide and is applied directly to the surface of theprint roll, from which it passes to the surface of the drive roll, andsubsequently to one or the other of the yarn packages that are beingrotated by the drive roll.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS This preferred embodiment is illustrated inthe accompanying drawings in which: FIG. 1 is a schematic perspectiveview of the apparatus of this invention, and I FIG. 2 is aside-elevational view, partially in cross section showing the apparatusof FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED 1 EMBODIMENT Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2,the apparatus of this invention includes a drive roll 2 which is mountedfor rotation on a shaft 4. The shaft 4 is suitably supported in amachine frame, which is indicated schematically at 6. The shaft '4 maybe continuous .and may support a plurality of drive rolls at each of aplurality of winding stations provided on the machine frame.

An upper bobbin chuck 8 and a lower bobbin chuck 10 are supported on themachine frame 6 in suitable guides for movement toward and away from theperipheral surface 14 of the drive roll. In the schematic representationof FIGS. 1 and 2, the bobbin chucks 8 and 10 are guided along parallelpaths by slots 16 and 18, respectively, so that as the yarn packagebuilds on each bobbin, the bobbin chuck moves away from the bobbin driveroll along the respective slots to accommodate the increasein diameterof the yarn package. Of course, as an alternative, the chucks may bemounted on pivoted arms or may slide along guide bars to allow motiontoward and away from the drive roll. In accordance with conventional.practice, a spring or other yieldable resistance means urges the yarnpackages into engagement with the peripheral surface 14 with sufficientforce to prevent slippage between the yarn package and the drive roll.

A traverse yarn guide 20 is mounted for reciprocating movement along abar 22 on the machine frame. The guide 20 is driven back and forth alongthe bar 22 by a cam in accordance with conventional practice.

A pivot arm 24 is mounted at one end on a pin 26 that extends outwardlyfrom the machine frame 6. At the opposite end of the arm, a print roll28 is supported for rotation on an axle 30 that extends outwardly fromthe arm 24 substantially parallel to the axis of the shaft 4.

The drive roll 2 has a drive ring 32, which may be in the form of aflange on the roll. The drive ring projects above the peripheral surface14 a distance greater than the thickness of the yarn being processed. Aspring 34 between the arm 24 and the frame 6 urges the roll 28 intoengagement with the drive ring 32. In order to avoid slippage betweenthe roll 28 and the ring 32, adequate friction surfaces must beprovided. As shown in'FlG. l, a band 36 formed of synthetic elastomericmaterial is applied to the surface of the roll 28 in alignment with thering 32. The band 36 assures that torque is transmitted by the ring 32to the roll 28 without slippage. A band formed of Synthane, a materialcontaining filler materials impregnated with phenolic or melamine resinshas been found to be suitable for this purpose.

The diameter of the print roll 28 is selected to substantially span thedistance between the traverse guide and the drive roll 2. By positioningthe traverse guide close to the surface of the print roll, the yarn isaccurately placed on the print roll and variations in the pattern of theyarn on the roll are minimized. The print roll preferably is positionedwith respect to the traverse guide and the drive roll such that the yarnis in engagement with the surface of the print roll through at least 90of rotation of the print roll in passing from the yarn guide to thesurface of the drive roll. This relationship avoids slippage of the yarnrelative to the surface of the print roll and assures that the patternis not disturbed in being transferred from the print roll to the driveroll.

In operation, a pair of yarns is laced through the traverse guide 20 andis passed under the print roll 28. One yarn end is wound on the upperbobbin which is supported on the chuck 8 and the other yarn end extendsaround the surface 14 where it is wrapped on the bobbin that issupported by the bobbin chuck 10. With the print roll positioned suchthat the band 36 engages the drive ring 32, rotation is imparted to thedrive roll 2 by means of the shaft 4 and the yarn is laid on the printroll by the traverse guide in a reciprocating pattern. The yarn in thesame pattern is transferred to the surface of the drive roll 2, asindicated by the dotted line 38 in FIG. 1. When at times yarn wrapoccurs on the surface of drive roll 2, and yarn is accumulated on theroll, the pivotable mounting of print roll 28 on arm 7A permits theprint roll to swing away from the peripheral surface 14 of the driveroll against the urging of spring 34.

The yarns on the exterior surface of the upper package bear against theperipheral surface 14 and the friction between the yarns and the surface14 imparts rotation to the upper yarn package. Similarly, the yarns inthe lower yarn package are driven by the peripheral surface 14. As thediameter of the respective yarn packages increases, the axis of rotationof the bobbins moves away from the bobbin dn've roll by sliding alongthe slots 16 and 18, in accordance with conventional practice. When thebobbins are filled, the bobbin chucks may be further displaced to thefront of the machine, and since the yarns pass around the front side ofthe drive roll, they are readily accessible to the doffing operator.

The yarn take-up of this invention provides a means for placing thetraverse guide close to the print roll, so that the yarn does not passacross large uncontrolled lengths. Also, the yarn passes around thefront side of the drive roll to simplify the lacing operation and topermit the use of line shafts for supporting a plurality of drive rolls.Since the print roll is mounted on a pivoted lever and driven directlyby the drive roll, there is no need for extensive modifications toexisting yarn takeup apparatus to achieve the benefits of thisinvention.

With a proper selection of diameters of the drive ring and the driveband, it is possible to achieve surface velocity of the bobbin driveroll that is equal or dif fer ent from the surface velocity of the smallprint roll. This facility to select differing surface velocities isparticularly useful when it is desired to maintain low tension upstreamof the winding operation, and relatively higher tension in the yarn asit is wound onto the package. In this way, for example, maximum benefitcan be obtained from the action of the yarn compaction devices whichoperate best at low tensions, while the higher tension developed in theyarn between the print roll and the bobbin drive roll permits thewinding of firm, high quality packages. For example, with denier yarn,the print and drive roll peripheral speed can be differentially adjustedto provide a yarn tension of 7 grams upstream of the print roll and 14grams tension downstream of the print roll, thus givinga higher windingtension than the initial take-up tension.

Because the yarn on the take up of this invention does not pass to therear of the bobbin drive roll, the take up is particularly suitable forthe mounting of devices that permit fully automatic dofiing andoperation of the take up.

While this invention has been illustrated and described in a preferredembodiment, it is recognized that variations and changes may be madetherein without departing from the invention as set forth in the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. Yarn take-up apparatus comprising a bobbin drive roll supported forrotation about an axis, said drive roll having a peripheral drivesurface, mounting means for mounting a pair or more of bobbins inposition to engage said drive roll at locations spaced from each otheraround the peripheral surface of the drive roll, traverse guide meansadjacent said surface of said drive roll, said traverse guide meansbeing movable axially relative to the drive surface of said drive roll,a print roll intermediate said traverse guide means and the drivesurface of said drive roll, means supporting said print roll forrotation about an axis, rotating means for rotating said print roll intimed relation with said drive roll, said supporting means allowingmovement of said print roll toward and away from said drive rollsurface, and

spring means yieldably biasing said print roll toward said surface, saidrotating means including cooperating surfaces on said print roll anddrive roll whereby rotation is imparted to said print roll by said driveroll and whereby yarns pass through said traverse guide means and extendaround the surface of the print roll and are carried on the surface ofthe drive roll for winding into a yarn package on the respective bobbin.

2. Yarn take-up apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said supportingmeans includes an arm and pivot means at one end of said arm, said printroll axis being spaced from said pivot axis, whereby said pivot armallows swinging movement of said print roll toward and away from saiddrive roll surface.

3. The yarn take-up apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said driveroll includes a radial flange adjacent said drive surface, said flangeforming a drive ring having a diameter greater than the diameter of saiddrive surface, said flange being in position to engage said print rollupon movement of said print roll toward said drive surface, wherebyrotation is imparted by said flange to said print roll, whilemaintaining the drive surface of said drive roll spaced from the surfaceof said print roll.

4. Yarn take-up apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said print rollhas a smaller diameter than said drive roll and the surface of saidprint roll is in close proximity to said traverse guide and arranged tosupport yarn on at least of arc of the surface of said print roll whilesaid yarn passes from said traverse guide to said drive roll surface.

1. Yarn take-up apparatus comprising a bobbin drive roll supported forrotation about an axis, said drive roll having a peripheral drivesurface, mounting means for mounting a pair or more of bobbins inposition to engage said drive roll at locations spaced from each otheraround the peripheral surface of the drive roll, traverse guide meansadjacent said surface of said drive roll, said traverse guide meansbeing movable axially relative to the drive surface of said drive roll,a print roll intermediate said traverse guide means and the drivesurface of said drive roll, means supporting said print roll forrotation about an axis, rotating means for rotating said print roll intimed relation with said drive roll, said supporting means allowingmovement of said print roll toward and away from said drive rollsurface, and spring means yieldably biasing said print roll toward saidsurface, said rotating means including cooperating surfaces on saidprint roll and drive roll whereby rotation is imparted to said printroll by said drive roll and whereby yarns pass through said traverseguide means and extend around the surface of the print roll and arecarried on the surface of the drive roll for winding into a yarn packageon the respective bobbin.
 2. Yarn take-up apparatus according to claim 1wherein said supporting means includes an arm and pivot means at one endof said arm, said print roll axis being spaced from said pivot axis,whereby said pivot arm allows swinging movement of said print rolltoward and away from said drive roll surface.
 3. The yarn take-upapparatus according to claim 1 wherein said drive roll includes a radialflange adjacent said drive surface, said flange forming a drive ringhaving a diameter greater than the diameter of said drive surface, saidflange being in position to engage said print roll upon movement of saidprint roll toward said drive surface, whereby rotation is imparted bysaid flange to said print roll, while maintaining the drive surface ofsaid drive roll spaced from the surface of said print roll.
 4. Yarntake-up apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said print roll has asmaller diameter than said drive roll and the surface of said print rollis in close proximity to said traverse guide and arranged to supportyarn on at least 90* of arc of the surface of said print roll while saidyarn passes from said traverse guide to said drive roll surface.